Sara Canning: 'We're grateful for Twilight'

Sara Canning has said that the people involved in Vampire Diaries are grateful that the Twilight series has boosted interest in vampires.

The actress told Parade that despite that, her show is very different from the teen book and movie franchise.

Canning said: "I think a lot of people thought, 'Okay, this is just going to be another Twilight'.

"But Vampire Diaries has a very specific group of fans who are not only interested in the vampire thing, but also the characters on the show and the storylines."

She added: "I think we're all very grateful [for Twilight]. Of course, with Twilight and True Blood there was already a huge group of fans, but we're a much different show.

"We all definitely want Vampire Diaries to pave its own way. We're very grateful that there's already fans of the genre, but I think we all want to make this show something special and something separate."